Heart-Shaped Lies

chapter one

One week earlier . . .

Kiara

The gossip accounts were wrong. Despite what they all seemed to claim, Kiara Stephens was not breaking up with Tommy Harding.

She didn’t know how the rumors had started. In the vlogs Tommy posted for his online followers, he and Kiara were always cuddling on sofas or feeding each other food in the school cafeteria. Fan-­made video compilations ordained their interracial relationship as “hashtag couple goals.” And just last week, Tommy had surprised her with matching outfits from their dream university. He’d even booked Kiara a meeting with his alumni connect during their senior trip. This way, Tommy had said, she wouldn’t have to stress so much about the fact that only one of them had gotten in so far.

What Tommy and she had was love. Real love. Like the kind that people killed for.

So why was it so hard for Kiara to deny the negative claims about their relationship in front of a camera?

“Smile,” Tommy whispered as he reached for Kiara from the bus seat next to her.

His words were drowned out by a blare of honking cars. Kiara strained to keep from jolting forward and spilling the iced coffee she was holding. But, like the bus driver steering their senior class dangerously through airport traffic, Tommy’s hold on her was indisputable.

“Can we film later?” Kiara asked. “I just want to go through some notes I wrote for the wait-­list process.”

Tommy’s lips quirked. “Don’t tell me you’re nervous, babe.”

“I’m not,” Kiara lied.

But like always, Tommy saw right through her. He was like his camera in that way: focused, attentive to detail, no matter how insignificant. Through its lens, Tommy documented everything, from the sun-­kissed gleam of Kiara’s dark brown skin to her russet eyes and prickles of sweat that lined her forehead as she fought to stay neutral on camera.

They were heading to Sunny World, Florida—­literally the most radiant place on Earth. This was where dreams came true and miracles happened. Tommy had probably planned a romantic stay for them to combat the trolls’ breakup rumors. They should be making out and basking in their relationship. And yet, in a few hours, Kiara would be having an admissions interview that could change the trajectory of her future. She’d made everything about herself. Again.

“It’s just really rare for a college to change their mind about admitting a student, so I don’t want to botch this interview,” Kiara admitted.

Again he drew her closer, this time brushing his lips against the edge of her ear. Warmth flooded through her cheeks. But the swell of butterflies she’d once felt for him was quelled by the sting of Tommy’s nails digging into her skin.

“Relax. All you have to do is show up and be your cute little self. I promise they’ll take you off the wait list.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Yes. It is.”

“No. It’s not. The interview’s just, like, the first part. I sent in my additional documentation, plus the extra essay. But it could still all not be good enough.”

From the corner of her gaze, Kiara caught the glow of a tiny red dot blinking from his phone screen. She frowned.

“Wait, are you livestreaming this?”

“Yes, so behave in front of my fans, will you?” Tommy teased. “This doesn’t have to be a whole argument.”

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

But he wasn’t listening. Tommy was reading a flurry of comment bubbles that had begun to flood his phone screen. He was in film mode, which meant that right now, they were in a performance. And Kiara would have to be his supporting actress.

“Hey, guys, it’s your boy Tommy here. Me and my girl, Kiara, are about to cut it up on our senior trip to Sunny World. We just landed not too long ago and now we’re on the bus to the hotel. The traffic is killing us, but you know I put my queen first. How you liking that coffee I got you, K?”

Off-­screen, Tommy pinched Kiara’s lower thigh. He didn’t say it, but the chastising was clear enough. In the last video of the two of them, Tommy’s followers had said Kiara looked like a hostage. He probably wanted her to laugh or something in case his sponsors tuned in for this broadcast.

The count of viewers watching the livestream doubled. Fifteen, thirty, sixty, and then one hundred fifteen. It was a low number considering what Tommy was used to. Not that Tommy ever blamed Kiara for the dip in his viewership. But she couldn’t help feeling like somehow it was her fault. Of all people in the world, of Tommy’s three point three million followers, he had chosen her. If the general public perceived Kiara badly, then it would reflect negatively on him. Sponsorships would be lost. Brand deals would be rescinded. It wasn’t fair of her to be the reason Tommy got canceled again.

So Kiara forced herself to smile at the camera and raise the iced coffee he’d purchased for her earlier that day. It really had been a sweet gesture.

“Loving it,” she said. “Thanks, babe.”

Tommy grinned. She’d done well. Hopefully his fans would be satisfied.

That was the thing about dating a viral prank star. If they were pissed at you, then so were their fans. For Tommy, that meant an army of preteens and edgelords could flood Kiara’s social media accounts at any moment, with or without Tommy’s request.

So when Tommy kissed Kiara, she didn’t flinch or think about the fact that the flurry of hearts showering his screen belonged to Tommy’s fans watching the livestream and not Kiara herself.

She counted to three before she pulled away. But the show wasn’t over. Tommy patted his shoulder, gesturing for Kiara to rest her head there.

It was soaked with sweat. The bus had no AC and Tommy refused to open the window for some reason. Half of their grade was packed together like sardines and cooking in the heat, but Tommy’s solution was to plaster sunscreen onto his pale skin and slap a baseball cap over his head, despite the sweat coating his forehead and dripping from his straight brown hair onto said shoulder.

After a moment of hesitation, Kiara acquiesced. At least she’d had the foresight to tie her Senegalese twists up in a bun so the strands of her hair wouldn’t stick to her cheeks as she rested her head against Tommy’s shoulder. She took a sip of her iced coffee and let herself zone out as Tommy spoke to his followers.

“Tonight I’m gonna have some special content for you all on my channel. Stay tuned. It’s gonna be the prank of the century. Right, Alex?”

At the mention of his name, Tommy’s right-­hand man and best friend, Alex Heart, loomed over their seats holding a mini mic and digital camera like he was some sort of paparazzo.

Sunlight glistened off of Alex’s dark brown skin as he filmed, and his shoulder-­length locs gleamed softly, framing his sharp features.

The two of them never wasted a chance to use their good looks to entice Tommy’s audience. For Alex, that meant hiding behind his ridiculous camera and using his rich, midnight voice to orchestrate things from behind the scenes. As Alex filmed Tommy and Kiara for his B-roll, he flicked through his phone and started reading comments viewers were posting from the livestream.

“Seagurlheartsharding asks, ‘What are you most excited about for this Sunny World trip?’ ” Alex said. “This is your first time in Florida, right, Tommy?”

“Yeah, kind of. But it definitely won’t be the last,” Tommy said, grinning. “I’m really excited to see the park and film some pranks because I know my fans have been missing those lately. We had some lawsuits we were fighting from haters, but it’s nothing we couldn’t handle. Things are gonna be bigger and better than ever. It’s a new me, but you already know there’s nothing more important to me than my viewers.”

Kiara almost choked on her iced coffee. What in the word soup had he even just said? Alex seemed amused too, though more at Kiara’s reaction than Tommy’s act.

“We know. We know,” Alex said. “You’re obsessed with your fans.”

Kiara’s cheeks burned. “That’s not what I was thinking.”

“No?” Alex said, fighting back laughter. “Please, tell us exactly what’s on your mind, K.”

“She’s just jealous,” Tommy teased, still speaking directly to the camera. “Kiara thinks I love you guys more than I love her.”

“Don’t you?” Alex asked.

Tommy frowned. “Why the hell would you say that?”

“He’s just joking,” Kiara said.

“Well, I’m not laughing. You already get hate enough as it is, K,” Tommy said. “He doesn’t have to make things worse.”

Alex snorted.

“What are you talking about? Your fans are more obsessed with Kiara than you.” As if to prove his point, Alex grabbed Tommy’s phone, pointing the screen at himself before turning it back to Kiara and Tommy.

“Viewers, what do you think?” Alex said. “Who loves Kiara more: you guys, or Tommy?”

Somehow, the question seemed to ruffle Tommy more than the first one had.

“Of course they love me more,” he snapped. “And of course they mean the world to me, just like Kiara does.”

One of the fans watching the livestream added a link to a poll so viewers could vote. Tension filled the air, and Kiara swore that one of their classmates in the seat next to Alex had stiffened in anticipation. But Tommy grabbed his phone from Alex and deleted the comment with the poll before the results could be posted.